RootData: February 2026 Cryptocurrency Exchange Transparency Research Report

Author: RootData

1. Transparency-Driven Cryptocurrency Exchange Rankings

In the cryptocurrency exchange rankings for February compiled by RootData, Binance, OKX, Coinbase, Kraken, Gate, Upbit, Kucoin, Crypto.com, HTX, and Bitget occupy the top 10 positions.

This ranking is based on RootData's rich data and integrates various indicators such as trading volume, reserve size, coin listing performance, compliance, and transparency of major exchanges, while avoiding the impact of trading volume manipulation and other cheating behaviors on the rankings, objectively reflecting the competitiveness and ranking of exchanges in the cryptocurrency market.

In this issue's rankings, Binance continues to hold the top position due to its highest trading volume and wealth effect, while OKX, as one of the few exchanges with an increase in trading volume this month, jumps to second place. Coinbase drops one position, and the active Kraken rises two places to fourth.

2. Overview of Cryptocurrency Exchange Development in February

1) Weak market conditions, the Spring Festival holiday, and other factors lead to a decline in trading volume

In February 2026, the cumulative spot trading volume of cryptocurrency exchanges was $895.2 billion, a slight decrease of 4.7% compared to January. This was the result of multiple factors, including market conditions, macroeconomic environment, and the Spring Festival holiday in Chinese-speaking regions.

From a price perspective, BTC fluctuated between $66,000 and $71,000 during February, repeatedly hitting resistance at higher levels without forming a trend breakthrough. ETH and major altcoins also maintained a fluctuating pattern, with the market lacking clear directional trends, directly suppressing the willingness for trend trading and new capital entry.

In an environment lacking unilateral market drivers, the activity level in the spot market naturally declined. Although the derivatives market saw some localized volume increase during short-term volatility, it overall failed to offset the total decline caused by the weakness in the spot market.

Meanwhile, the impact of the Spring Festival holiday on the global trading structure remained significant, with many retail investors and some institutional accounts pausing or reducing their operational scale, leading to a temporary decrease in liquidity during Asian trading hours. Since Asia holds significant weight in the global cryptocurrency market, the holiday effect was amplified at the total volume level.

On a macro level, global risk assets entered a rebalancing phase in February, with a marginal increase in risk aversion. Some funds flowed into precious metals and bond markets, and the decline in risk appetite made the marginal allocation demand for cryptocurrency assets more conservative. Even though some Bitcoin spot ETFs continued to see net inflows, the incremental scale was insufficient to create a trend-level volume surge, ultimately leading to a slight decline in overall trading volume in the cryptocurrency market.

In summary, the decline in spot trading volume in February 2026 is the result of multiple factors resonating but does not signal a market recession. Looking ahead to March, as the Spring Festival effect dissipates, potential regulatory benefits (such as the deepening implementation of the EU MiCA framework) and clearer macro data (such as rising expectations for Federal Reserve interest rate cuts), trading activity is expected to rebound.

2) Decrease in the frequency of new listings on exchanges, high transparency projects favored

Due to the continued downturn in the cryptocurrency market and many project employees and investors in Chinese-speaking regions entering a low-activity state during the Spring Festival holiday, the number of new token issuances this month also hit a new low. According to RootData statistics, the number of new tokens launched by first-tier exchanges this month totaled 10-15, with a cumulative total of 28 new tokens launched (stablecoins and tokenized stocks not included), with each exchange launching between 2 and 14 new tokens.

Among them, both Binance and OKX launched only 2 new tokens, while exchanges like Kraken, Gate, and Coinbase launched multiple existing tokens, such as CFG, TAO, HYPE, SKR, etc., but this was significantly reduced compared to previous months. These phenomena collectively led to very limited stimulation of trading sentiment among users.

By analyzing these newly listed exchange tokens, it can be seen that 82% of the tokens had transparency scores above 60%, and 43% had transparency scores above 80%, with only 2 tokens scoring below 40%. This indicates that high transparency tokens are more likely to gain favor and trust from exchanges, as high transparency means that projects place users and communities in important positions and are more willing to engage in long-term development.

3) Increased merger and acquisition activities among exchanges in the Asia-Pacific region, traditional financial giants entering the market

In February, merger and acquisition activities in the cryptocurrency exchange sector significantly increased, with Asia-Pacific exchanges such as Korbit, Coinhako, and Independent Reserve being acquired by traditional financial giants. This reflects that, against the backdrop of gradually clarifying regulations and increasing market maturity, traditional financial institutions in the Asia-Pacific region are accelerating their layout in the compliant cryptocurrency asset field, seeking to quickly enter the digital asset market through the acquisition of mature licensed exchanges, connect traditional finance with blockchain infrastructure, and capture growth opportunities in tokenized securities, stablecoins, and institutional-level digital asset services.

In 2025, cryptocurrency exchanges such as Bullish, Gemini, Kraken, and Hashkey Group successively went public, raising billions of dollars in total, which opened up exit paths for exchanges in the traditional financial sector.

On February 4, global CFD trading giant IG Group announced the completion of its acquisition of the Australian cryptocurrency trading platform Independent Reserve, which has been approved by the Monetary Authority of Singapore. On February 13, Mirae Asset Group announced an investment of 133.5 billion Korean won (approximately $93.82 million) to acquire 92.06% of the shares of the South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Korbit through its subsidiary Mirae Asset Consulting.

On February 17, Japan's SBI Holdings announced plans to acquire a majority stake in the Singapore cryptocurrency exchange Coinhako to further deepen its layout in the cryptocurrency field.

3. Major Exchange Cases and Analysis

1) Binance

In February, Binance's spot trading volume was $319.8 billion, a month-on-month decrease of 19.7%, the largest decline among first-tier exchanges. This anomaly reflects that, in addition to weak market conditions, Binance may also have been significantly affected by the public relations turmoil from the previous month.

In January, Binance's irresponsible performance during the 1011 incident once again drew unanimous criticism from many industry media and KOLs, particularly questioning its risk control mechanisms under extreme market conditions, which may lead to the migration of many large institutional clients.

This month, Binance launched only two spot assets, ESP and ZAMA, in the spot market, but launched five token trading pairs including ROMO, OPN, AZTEC, ESP, TRIA, and eight tokenized stock trading pairs including COIN and CRCL in the derivatives market, reflecting Binance's strategy to attract more users and trading volume through TradFi products.

On the compliance front, Binance's co-CEO Richard Teng revealed this month that the exchange has submitted an application to the Greek regulatory authority to obtain an operating license under the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation.

In terms of traffic, Binance performed best this month in emerging markets such as Russia and South Korea, with total visits exceeding 5.27 million, significantly ahead of other cryptocurrency exchanges.

2) OKX

In February, OKX's spot trading volume was $60.5 billion, a month-on-month increase of 4.3%, making it one of the few cryptocurrency exchanges with an increase in trading volume.

This month, OKX continued to maintain a low-frequency listing strategy, launching only two assets, CC and ZAMA, in the spot market, and additionally launching assets such as AZTEC, ESP, ROBO, and OPN in the derivatives market.

On February 26, OKX officially launched stock perpetual contract functions in some supported countries/regions, joining the competition for tokenized stocks, making it so that all major cryptocurrency exchanges now support tokenized stock trading functions.

3) Coinbase

In February, Coinbase's spot trading volume was $70.2 billion, a month-on-month increase of 2.3%, also making it one of the few cryptocurrency exchanges with an increase in trading volume.

In terms of new listings, Coinbase launched new coins such as ROBO, ZAMA, AZTEC, and ESP, as well as existing coins like DEEP, UP, and HYPE. The number of 12 newly listed coins was second only to Kraken among first-tier exchanges, and all tokens had transparency scores above 60%, reflecting that Coinbase is actively using a positive listing strategy to attract more users.

In terms of website traffic, Coinbase performed relatively well this month in emerging markets such as Turkey and Russia, but overall traffic still significantly lagged behind exchanges like Binance and Gate, mainly because Coinbase focuses primarily on compliant markets in Europe and the United States.

This month, Coinbase announced its Q4 and full-year financial report for 2025, recording a net loss of $667 million, with total revenue of $1.78 billion, a month-on-month decrease of 5% and a year-on-year decrease of about 22%. The total trading volume for 2025 increased by 156% year-on-year, and its share of the cryptocurrency trading market doubled to about 6.4%.

4) Gate

In February, Gate's spot trading volume was $70.8 billion, a month-on-month decrease of 11.7%, slightly larger than the overall decline in the cryptocurrency market.

In terms of new listings, Gate launched eight coins in the spot market this month, including PACT, AZTEC, ESP, CRYPTOBURG, RNBW, ELON, BIRB, and ZAMA, a decrease of 14 from the previous month. In terms of website traffic, Gate performed well this month in emerging cryptocurrency markets such as South Korea, Russia, Vietnam, and Turkey, with total visits reaching 2.46 million, but traffic in markets like Russia and Vietnam declined by over 20% month-on-month.

This month, Gate announced that it has obtained a payment institution (PI) license granted by the Malta Financial Services Authority (MFSA), laying the foundation for conducting compliant stablecoin and payment services across the EU. Gate also announced the launch of a promoter task and incentive platform, Gate Booster, aimed at connecting quality promotional resources with Gate ecosystem projects through standardized task mechanisms and incentive systems for KOLs, content creators, and community builders in the cryptocurrency industry.

Other important exchange dynamics this month:

• Kraken announced the launch of regulated perpetual futures contracts based on tokenized stocks. These products are aimed at eligible non-US users in over 110 countries/regions and track digital versions of major US stocks, indices, and gold ETFs, built on xStocks' tokenized stock products.
• Kraken announced the launch of a crypto asset staking loan service called "Flexline," allowing Kraken Pro traders to obtain liquidity using existing digital assets as collateral without selling their positions.
• Gemini announced a 25% layoff (up to 200 people) and its exit from the European market. Two weeks later, its COO Marshall Beard, CFO Dan Chen, and Chief Legal Officer Tyler Meade have all left the company.
• Crypto.com announced this month that it has received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to apply for a federal charter for a national bank. This approval will allow Crypto.com to provide digital asset custody and staking services under a federal regulatory framework.
• KuCoin launched KuCoin Feed 2.0 and KuCoin Live, aimed at connecting real-time market discussions with professional-level trading execution features within the KuCoin App.

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